Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving/Odds and Ends/Open Thread

OPERA FRIDA KAHLO WITH GRACE ECHAURI

Happy Thanksgiving to all. Christopher Hitchens wrote a brilliant essay in 2005, about Thanksgiving being a great American holiday. It is a holiday not connected to any particular religion. It is a time when a family may be feeding a complete stranger, or neighbor.

Soon I will have a post about the Spanish Civil War, with a Youtube video of John Peterson, who contributes to this blog, talking on that subject. It is the what not to do revolution.

Milk didn't introduce Jones to Jimmy Carter, and it's not about conspiracy theories or guilt by association. Milk wasn't guilty of anything, except knowing and admiring a man who LATER turned out to be a psychopath.

The question is why would a film about Milk eliminate all references to Jonestown ?

It's like making a film about Thomas Jefferson without mentioning Sally Hemnmings. It's called a whitewash...

Happy Thanksgiving to you, too, Ren. I'd seen your blog before, too, and now have bookmarked it to read more regularly. And yes, I'd made a comment over at Louis Proyect's. I know him from his comments at Lenin's Tomb.

I really like your stories but my preparation on international politics is not big enough to give an opinion on everything, but I love to read it.I like Frida Kahlo and Mexico and I am looking forward to seeing your article on the Spanish Civil War.You know that I love the American cinema, Sean Penn, Nicole Kidman ... Greetings

Sonia: Unlike W., Milk had a tight script. The fact a liberal bourgeoise politician would hustle votes from a black church is not amazing. I think the story can be told without reference to Fish, Moscone or Milk.

Weezie: You'll like Milk. Sean Penn was so good, it was scary.

JayV: Thank you for visiting. I have a friend who knows Louis P, from his SWP days.

Tere: I will be interested in your insights about the Spanish Civil War.

FJ: I like Frida's work. I acknowledge that both her and Diego Rivera, became Stalinist. I put up the video, because I met the singer Grace Echauri. Sopranoes get my heart beating fast.

On the Spanish Civil War there are many things that Spaniards do not know, not even seriously studied in the schools.El right-wing party (PP) does not touch the subject, and I know a few things because I read books by Hugh Thomas and novelists explaining details about them.The President Suarez and the newly legalized political parties in the 70 agreed to the signing of the Moncloa Pacts, and therefore can not desligitimar Franco's government and say clearly that it was a coup against República.La people still afraid to have more if confrontation is telling the truth

As you known already about the events of Mumbai attack, it is now very important to resist the temptation of hate and divide syndrome, ultra regionalism which are already injected and build up among peoples and religious communities (a drifting from class theory). India is suffered from very frequent terror attack in these recent years, even in a gap between less then a month. Above all conspiracy theory and backdrop it’s all about blood, blood, blood……all means sufferings of innocents…largely nothing but a non human provocation.AVAAZ campaign a sign in message and you can join there and express your solidarity with the people of India.here the site link to AVAAZ:http://www.avaaz.org/en/india_undivided/?cl=151936204&v=2465

I still haven't decided what to think about Milk. As a movie about a martyred saint, it was effective, upbeat agitprop. As a movie about a working politician, it left a lot to be desired. But, it's not quite fair to judge it by criteria it wasn't trying to meet.